The Books that Explain Us
What the World’s Greatest Literature Teaches Us About Duty, Love, War, Leadership, Meaning of Life, Suffering and Mortality
Explore the world's greatest literature - and the ideas that connect it.
Enduring questions have been answered over time in sometimes strikingly different ways – and sometimes surprisingly similar.
How Should we live?
Confucius, Plato, Aristotle, Bhagavad Gita,…
Why do humans go to war?
Iliad, Bhagavad Gita, War and Peace, War,…
What is a good leader?
The Analects, Republic, Machiavelli, Iliad,…
Why are we here?
Or explore our Maps, Timelines, and discover the Civilizations in which these great works were created.
The Great Books Atlas
Visualize the connections between civilizations, literature, themes timelines, and maps.
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An Ancient Greek epic poem attributed to Homer, composed around the 8th century BC. Focused on War, Anger, Honor, and Mortality.
Written in Greek by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius between 170 and 180 CE. Focused on Self-Command, Adversity, and Mortality.
A 700 verse spiritual text written by the ancient sage Maharishi Ved Vyasa as part of the larger epic Mahabharata. Focused on Duty, Action, Detachment, and Spirituality.
A famous epic novel by Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, originally published in 1867. Focused on History, Love, Ambition, Death, and Meaning.
A tragic play, wiremen by William Shakespeare and originally published in 1623. Focused on Doubt, Morality, and Death.
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